Driverless robot taxis to be tested in Japanese town

Fujisawa residents will be ferried in driverless cars, which, if successful, could be used to transport spectators for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Dozens of people in Japan will be whisked to the local shops in driverless taxis from next year in an experiment with robot technology that could be fully commercial by the time Tokyo hosts the Olympics in 2020.

From March 2016, the taxis will take about 50 residents of Fujisawa, a large coastal town near Tokyo, from their homes to supermarkets along the city's main roads in journeys of about 3km.